Hawai'i's Volcanoes of Life | America's National Parks | National Geographic

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NARRATOR: Hawaii is the only place in the US where humpbacks breed and nurse their young. [WHALE CALLS] Born with very little fat, calves would soon freeze to death in the cold waters of Alaska. Mothers come to these clear shallow waters to avoid predators. [SPLASHING WAVES] But there's a catch. There's no food here. The moms go hungry, losing up to 40% of their weight raising their calves. [WHALE CALLS] It's a sacrifice that pays off. Humpback populations are increasing.

The park is just one place to see these giants of the deep, but they are not its biggest attraction. Two massive volcanoes are. The first Kilauea. One of the most active volcanoes on earth. The lava lake inside this crater can be more than 750 feet deep. Its lava flows can reach the sea 10 miles away. Kilauea is so big, that even its vents and craters are huge. Starting in 1983, one of these vents erupted for 35 years. It produced so much lava that it covered the coast road, burying it more than 100 feet deep.

To the west is the second volcano, and it's the biggest on the planet. This is Mauna Loa, rising more than 56,000 feet above its base, much taller than even Mt. Everest. The park exists thanks to eruptions over hundreds of thousands of years. Where hardened lava forms a solid foundation for life. Close to the source, poisonous gas fumes escape from hot vents called fumaroles. This landscape is often swept clean by molten lava.

It's one of the most barren and toxic environments on Earth. Nature has had to adapt to living in this land of fire. A wingless larva cricket. After an eruption, she is the first creature to take up residence in this hostile landscape. The ultimate pioneer. No larger than a fingernail, she survives by eating morsels of food that billow in with the ocean breeze. Nobody knows where she comes from, where she goes, or how long she lives. In many ways, she's a mystery. [MUSIC PLAYING]